I have a new tank, uncycled so far and only just set up, but I thought I'd ask this in advance. It's 180 litres, that's nearly 40 UK gallons and 48 american gallons. I have one 5inch common, and would really like a shubunkin friend for him. But would it be better not to get another goldie due to space restrictions? I know it's 20 gallons per single tail... but still... and if I didn't get a goldie, what else could I get, aside from snails/plecos which I'm not too keen on. I've seen posts about various minnows- can anyone give me more info on them? Thanks!

I always thought rosy red minnows might be a good match since they like the same conditions as goldfish but I never actually tried it. If your gf is very big he might try to eat the smaller minnows, though. Make sure to qt if you do get rosies 'cause they aren't always taken the best care of--since they are mainly used for "feeders". I had some in my trop tank for awhile and they are quite spunky--not afraid to get their share of food with the bigger fish. First though they cock their heads to look up and see if it's safe to go to the top--very cute!!

dojo loaches. just cant get enough of the little buggers!! lots of personality and very compatiable with goldfish.

I'd go for another fish. A fastie of course like a common or shub. And only one. 2 fish is very special as they often swim alongside/turn at the same time etc like synchronised swimming which is sweet to watch. Let us know what you decide

Decisions decisions! There are baby Bristol shubunkins in one of my LFSs... the loaches look much nicer than plecos though!

Hillstream loaches / Coldwater plecos would be good too!

i would get weather/dojo loaches like nabki said, they look so cute :3

My mother is refusing to have loaches in the house because they "look like worms". Great.

my mum said the same thing but i still ended up with one. i think you should get another goldie either a shubunkin or comet even a common.

I would go with another goldfish to keep your one lone fish company. Bristol shubbies are really beautiful and not readily available here in the USA, so you're lucky if you've got them there. Keep a close eye on your water parameters, over-filter if you can, and stick to a schedule of regular water changes with two fish in that size aquarium.

Okay, I see in your original post that your tank is brand new and uncycled. In that case, I think you should wait at least 30 days to add any more fish. Right now you should be testing your water daily for ammonia and doing water changes. When I had my fish room, I would change a third to half of the water in my new tanks every THREE DAYS for a month until the tank safely cycled. That kept the dangerous ammonia from burning the fish's gills and killing the fish.

Once that first month is up, your filter and tank will be cycled and you can safely add another fish. Personally, I would go with a Bristol shubbie. The Bristols are beautiful -- great tails on those fish and they are the same tail type as what you've already got which is important. It's important because common tailed fish are very fast and can beat up fancy tails or take food so fast from the fancies that there is little left for them....

Good luck with your new tank. Post a pic of your Bristol if you get one.

My fish isn't even in the tank yet- as I said, I was just asking all this in advance and planning ahead.

I haven't started cycling it as the filter leaks and we're trying replacing bits with new parts until it stops leaking. Then I intend to do a fishless cycle... probably around Christmas as I'm going back to uni soon and can't rely on my parents to do it. I do know about keeping goldfish and cycling new tanks, but thanks anyway!

I will definitely post Bristol pics if I get one